Container fitment applying machine



Nov. 2, 1965 A. w. WELLER 3,214,887

CONTAINER FITMENI APPLYING MACHINE Original Filed May 27, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet l Nov. 2, 1965 A. w. WELLER CONTAINER FITMEN'I APPLYING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed May 27, 1959 United States Patent 3,214,887 CONIAIWER FITMENT APPLYING MACHINE Arthur W. Weller, Brooklyn, N.Y., assignor to Rosina Automatic Machinery C0., Iuc., Brooklyn, N.Y., a corporation of New York Continuation of application Ser. No. 816,198, May 27, 1959. This application Nov. 8, 1962, Ser. No. 236,337 Claims. (Cl. 53316) This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 816,198, filed May 27, 1959, now abandoned, entitled Container Fitment Applying Machine.

This invention relates generally to the field of container closing, and more particularly to an improved device for applying synthetic resinous fitments.

In certain types of dispensing containers, a fitment element is connected within the neck of a container, usually as an intermediate or secondary closure. Examples of such fitments are those which provide a resilient neckengaging portion, a sifting or sprinkling plate, or a liquiddispensing device which will empty a container in incremental predetermined quantities, or snap-on closures of resilient type. Most frequently. such fitments are composed of relatively flexible resins, such as polyethylene, vinyls, copolymers, polystyrene or materials having similar physical and chemical properties.

Since the proper and rapid placement of such fitments on containers is economically desirable, it is one of the present objects of the present invention to provide a device for accomplishing this end.

Another object herein lies in the provision of a machine of the class described which may rapidly install fitments while yet assuring that substantially every container will receive a fitment therefor.

Another object herein lies in the provision of a machine which will properly seat and level the fitment with respect to the container neck so that an adequate closure or seal is obtained and the fitment will not interfere with, and will properly engage an additional cap or closure where such is used.

A feature of the invention lies in the fact that the fitment installing means acts in conjunction with a hopper which orients the fitments prior to reaching the fitment installing means.

These objects, and other incidental ends and advantages will more fully appear in the progress of this disclosure and be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views:

FIGURE 1 is a view in perspective of an embodiment of the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary elevational view enlarged, as seen from the right of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmentary detail sectional view.

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged fragmentary front elevational view.

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary top elevational view as seen from the plane 55 on FIGURE 4.

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view showing in greater detail a portion of FIGURE 4.

In accordance with the invention, the device, generally indicated by reference character 10, comprises broadly: a fitment feeding hopper element 12, a fitment chute element 14, a conveyor element 16, container advancement belt elements 18, a fitment applying unit 20, a frame element 22, and a base element 24.

The hopper element 12 may be of any well-known type, the specific details of which form no part of the present disclosure. It includes a drum 28 driven by a motor 29 through gears 31 and provision (not shown) for feeding the fitments in a preoriented relation with respect to the chute element 14.

The chute element 14 may be also of conventional type, including a vertically disposed portion 36 and an angularly disposed portion 38 which terminates at the lower end thereof in a gate element 40. The chute element is formed by a bottom wall 42, side walls 44 and 45, and a pair of top walls 47 and 49 which define an elongated opening 51. The gate element 40 is adapted to permit the passage of individual fitments when engaged by a container, as shown in FIGURE 4, the details of which are best seen in FIGURE 5. A bridge member 53 supports a resilient tongue 55. As best seen in FIGURE 6, the tongue 55 is generally arcuately shaped, and includes a lower surface 56 which contacts the upper surfaces 57 of individual fitments 59 as the same pass along the chute member 14 to the point of discharge. Situated alongside the bridge member 53 is a resilient cage member 61 including a mounting portion 63 and a pair of opposed finger portions 65 and 67. A spring 69 interconnects the finger portions to urge them toward each other while adjusting screws 71 and 73 determine the spacing of the converging segments 75 and 77. The segments 75 and 77, in turn, support jaw segments 78 and 79 which are spread apart with the passage of individual fitments 59.

The conveyor element 16 may be of a conventional type including an endless belt 80 formed of a plurality of links 82. The belt 80 passes over a forward sprocket 84 and a corresponding rear sprocket (not shown), to provide a continuous upper segment 86 which is generally horizontally disposed and upon which containers, generally indicated by reference character 87, may pass. Supported above the belt 80 are leftand right-hand guard rails 88 and 90 which align the containers 87, as is Wellknown in the art.

The container advancing belt elements 18 are two in number, including a left-hand belt element 92 and a righthand belt element 94. The belt elements 92 and 94 are substantially similar, and preferably of a segmented resilient block type. They are driven from a prime mover 95 through sprockets 96 and a horizontally disposed shaft 98. The shaft 99 interconnects portions of the frame 14-1 and acts as a stabilizer for the container advancement belt elements 18. The gears 102 and 104 on shaft 98 engage vertically disposed gears 106 and 108 on shafts 110 and 112, respectively. In practice, it has been found desirable to run the belt elements 92 and 94- at a linear speed slightly greater than that of the conveyor element 16 to result in properly spacing successive containers 87. Where the diameter of the neck of an individual container is substantially less than the over-all diameter thereof, as is common in the case of bottles containing pourable liquids, adequate spacing is provided by the contact of successive containers at their widest dimension. However, in the case of containers in which the neck is of a diameter substantially equal to, or larger than, the body of the container, it is preferable to provide means for maintaining a space between successive containers to avoid interference at the time the fitments are positioned upon the necks. By increasing the speed of the belt elements 92 and 94 with respect to the conveyor element 16, this spacing is automatically provided for a short time before and during the placement of the fitment.

The fitment applying unit 20 is best seen in FIGURES 4 and 6 on the drawing and provides a means for forcing the fitments upon the open necks of the containers by a simple rolling motion. The unit includes an extension of the frame element 22 which is generally vertically disposed, the extension supporting a pair of pivotally mounted arms 116 at the lower end thereof. Counterclockwise movement of the arms 116 with respect to the extension 115 is limited by a vertically disposed stop member 117 having a spring 118 which bears against the extension 115. Clockwise motion is determined by an adjustment screw 119. The head 121 of the screw bears against the extension 115, and from a consideration of FIGURE 6, it will be apparent that the lowermost limit of the path of travel is governed by the screw 11 in a positive manner, while the upward movement is governed by the spring 118. A tension screw 118a adjusts the tension exerted by the spring 118 to a degree such that in normal operation no flexing of the spring occurs.

Disposed at the lower ends of the arms 116 is a horizontally mounted axle 122 which supports a fitment roller 123 for rotation. As best seen in FIGURE 3, the roller 123 includes a pair of outer peripheral surfaces 124 and 125 separated by a circular groove 126. In practice, the roller may be formed in three disk-like sements, the outer two being of equal diameter and the centrally disposed segment being of a lesser diameter. The roller 123 is maintained substantially centrally upon the axle 122 by bolt members 127 and 128. The axle extends through openings 129 and 130 in the arms 116, and is provided on each end with a pair of resilient friction-inducing members 131 which provide a braking effect to resist rotation of the roller 123 in either direction. The degree of braking is variable and is controlled by the tightening of outer nut members 132 and 133 which cause the frictioninducing members 131 to bear upon the outer surfaces 134 of the arms 116.

The frame element 22 may be of any desired construction well-known in the art, including an upper platform 138 which supports the hopper element 12 and chute element 14. The stanchions 139 and 140 interconnect the upper platform 138 with the lower platform 141 which supports the conveyor element 16.

The base element 24 is also conventional, including vertical legs 143 which support the device upon a floor or other horizontal surface (not shown). Crank means 144 is mounted upon a shaft 145 which includes gear means (not shown, for raising the upper platform 138 with respect to the lower platform 141, thereby providing adjustment means for containers of varying heights.

During operation, fitments 59 travel down the chute element 14 to be arrested by the gate element 40, as best seen in FIGURE 5. The lowermost fitment will be thus disposed at an angle with respect to the horizontal, the lowermost rim of the fitment extending into the path of a neck 148 of a container 87. As the container passes beneath the gate, the engagement of the lowermost rim serves to spread the finger portions 65 and 67 to a point where the engaged fitment passes therebetween. As the container 87 continues its motion, the fitment 59 is resiliently maintained in contact therewith by the action of the tongue 55 which extends into the groove 126 of the roller 123. Upon meeting the peripheral surfaces 124 and 125, the fitment is pressed firmly upon the neck 148, as best seen in FIGURE 4. This operation eliminates the necessity of any safety devices on the chute element 14, since fitments are removed therefrom only upon the presence of a container in fitment receiving position.

Should an imperfectly formed fitment or container neck become disposed beneath the roller 123, a limited counterclockwise motion of the arms 116 is possible, preventing damage to the machine, fitment or container. As the fitments are relatively flexible, the braking action of the roller 123 provided by the members 131 prevents the fitments from slipping from the necks of the containers because of their inherent resiliency.

It may thus be seen that there has been provided novel and highly useful improvements in fitment placing devices, in which flexible synthetic resinous fitments may be properly seated at a relatively high rate of production with positive assurance that all containers passing through the device will be properly capped. Should an improperly sized fitment be picked up by a passing container, the braking action of the roller associated with the fitment applying unit will tend to stretch the fitment into position, and, to an extent, compensate for the inadequate fit which would otherwise be present. Because of the relatively few number of moving parts comprising the device, it may be constructed at a reasonably low cost and may be run with relatively little attendance and with a minimum of time during which the device is shut down for repairs. Adjustment for varying sizes of fitments and heights of containers is performed by the turning of threaded means without modification of the device.

I wish it to be understood that I do not consider the invention limited to the precise details of structure shown and set forth in this specification, for obvious modifications will occur to those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains.

I claim:

1. In a device for installing flexible fitments upon the necks of containers, including fitment supply means, a conveyor element supporting said containers in substantially vertical positions, a fitment applying unit including a chute having a lower end including a resilient gate element, said gate element serving to position successive fitments to be contacted by the necks of successive containers on said conveyor element, and a roller element positioned adjacent said gate element for pressing contacted fitments upon the necks of said containers, the improvement comprising: a relatively fixed supporting arm, said roller element being supported upon a shaft for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis by said arm, said shaft being supported by said arm, a friction-inducing member mounted upon said shaft and having means frictionally contacting a planar surface of said arm to place a drag upon rotation of said shaft relative to said arm.

2. In a device for installing flexible fitments upon the necks of containers, including fitment supply means, a conveyor element supporting said containers in substantially vertical positions, a fitment applying unit including a chute having a lower end including a resilient gate element, said gate element serving to position successive fitments to be contacted by the necks of successive containers on said conveyor element, and a roller element positioned adjacent said gate element for pressing contacted fitments upon the necks of said containers, the improvement comprising: a relatively fixed supporting arm, said roller element being supported upon a shaft for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis by said arm, said shaft being supported by said arm, a friction-inducing member mounted upon said shaft and having means frictionally contacting a planar surface of said arm to place a drag upon rotation of said shaft relative to said arm; said lastmentioned means including a resilient component.

3. In a device for installing flexible fitments upon the necks of containers, including fitment supply means, a conveyor element supporting said containers in substantially vertical positions, a fitment applying unit including a chute having a lower end including a resilient gate element, said gate element serving to position successive fitments to be contacted by the necks of successive containers on said conveyor element, and a roller element positioned adjacent said gate element for pressing contacted fitments upon the necks of said containers, the improvement comprising: a relatively fixed supporting arm, said roller element being supported upon a shaft for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis by said arm, said shaft being supported by said arm, a frictioninducing member mounted upon said shaft and having means frictionally contacting a planar surface of said arm to place a drag upon rotation of said shaft relative to said arm; said last-mentioned means including an adjustable resilient component.

4. In a device for installing flexible fitments upon the necks of containers, including fitment supply means, a conveyor element supporting said containers in substantially vertical positions, a fitment applying unit including a chute having a lower end including a resilient gate element, said gate element serving to position successive fitments to be contacted by the necks of successive containers on said conveyor element, and a roller element positioned adjacent said gate element for pressing contacted fitments upon the necks of said containers, the improvement comprising: a relatively fixed supporting arm, said roller element being supported upon a shaft for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis by said arm, said shaft being supported by said arm, a friction-inducing member mounted upon said shaft and having means frictionally contacting a planar surface of said arm to place a drag upon rotation of said shaft relative to said arm; said last-mentioned means including a resilient component and threaded means for adjusting the degree of frictional contact between said means and said planar surface of said arm.

5. In a device for installing flexible fitments upon the necks of containers, including fitment supply means, a conveyor element supporting said containers in substantially vertical positions, a fitment applying unit including a chute having a lower end including a resilient gate element, said gate element serving to position successive fitments to be contacted by the necks of successive containers on said conveyor element, and a roller element positioned adjacent said gate element for prmsing contacted fitments upon the necks of said containers, the improvement comprising: said roller element being supported for rotation upon a relatively fixed support, and frictional braking means interconnecting said roller and said support for placing a drag upon rotation of said roller relative to said support.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,016,798 2/12 Thompson et a1. 15138 2,821,823 2/58 Wahl 53-316 XR 2,963,837 12/60 Dimond 53-67 FOREIGN PATENTS 481,228 3/ 38 Great Britain.

FRANK E. BAILEY, Primary Examiner.

TRAVIS S. MCGEHEE, Examiner. 

1. IN A DEVICE FOR INSTALLING FLEXIBLE FITMENTS UPON THE NECKS OF CONTAINERS, INCLUDING FITMENT SUPPLY MEANS, A CONVEYOR ELEMENT SUPPORTING SAID CONTAINERS IN SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL POSITIONS, A FITMENT APPLYING UNIT INCLUDING A CHUTE HAVING A LOWER END INCLUDING A RESILIENT GATE ELEMENT, SAID GATE ELEMENT SERVING TO POSITION SUCCESSIVE FITMENTS TO BE CONTACTED BY THE NECKS OF SUCCESSIVE CONTAINERS ON SAID CONVEYOR ELEMENT, AND AROLLER ELEMENT POSITIONED ADJACENT SAID GATE ELEMENT FOR PRESSING CONTACTED FITMENTS UPON THE NECKS OF SAID CONTAINERS, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING: A RELATIVELY FIXEDX SUPPORTING 